Buy A Toyota Prius Plug-In, Get Up To $5,000 In Cash Incentives

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Buy A Toyota Prius Plug-In, Get Up To $5,000 In Cash Incentives

Antony Ingram

22 4,253 views Nov 27, 2012

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2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid

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Toyota is offering up to $5,000 in bonus financing cash for buyers of the 2013 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid.

Until December 3, buyers can get $5,000 bonus financing cash on the Plug-In Prius Advanced model (offer #1239), and $4,000 on the regular Plug-In Prius (#1235).

The deals also include 0% APR over 60 months, and eligible buyers can still claim up to $2,500 in federal tax credits. Interested parties can find the offers on the Buyatoyota.com website.

The 2013 Toyota Prius Plug-In achieves 95 MPGe in electric mode, with a combined 50 MPG as a hybrid, matching that of the regular model.

Blended electric range is 11 miles, while buyers can expect six miles of all-electric range. You can find out more on the Prius Plug-In's slightly confusing EPA economy sticker here.

For more on the Prius Plug-In, why not head over to our full drive report?

[Hat tip to John C. Briggs]

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Comments (22)

usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/27/2012 1:13pm PST

The cash bonus should level the playing field.

I am getting 12-13 EV miles in the winter. My strategy is to use EV for the city around town driving and use 50 MPG gas engine for the highway.

So far, I am average 54 MPG (gas miles divided by gallons) and 258 Wh/mi on electricity (including 15% charging loss).

PiP is very efficient with either fuel.

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 3:19pm PST

"PiP is very efficient with either fuel."

Pip is very slow with either fuel.

Horse are more efficient than Prius, but most people don't ride horses to work anymore...

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usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:12pm PST

0-30 mph is the same as Volt. 0-60 mph is a second slower. More than adaquate for me. It shouldn't be a deal breaker for most people.

Mid size interior, flat cargo floor, lowest emission of any plugin, cleanest and most efficient gas engine, proven reliability, etc.

A compact 4 sweater that increases emission in most states can be a deal breaker for most people, IMHO.

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:29pm PST

0-30mph, I have seen numbers from the same to Volt faster by 0.1 seconds. Small difference.
0-60mph, I have seen at least 1 second faster to as much as 1.8 seconds faster. That is a lot in 0-60mph. That is more than 12% difference. 1 sec at 60mph is over 88 ft. That is difference between safe merging or not.

0-70mph is over 2 secs in difference. That means that Volt is continuing to pull away at that speed.

60-0mph braking, Volt is shorter by over 20 ft. That is the difference between running into a pile of cars and stopping without accident. With a 4-star rated safety rating, I would say that is important.

Volt is also faster on turns and lane changes. All of those are done with over 560lbs heavier (mostly battery weight).

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:30pm PST

Not to mention the fact that Volt can do all those numbers while stay in EV mode where Pip can't achieve any of those numbers while in EV mode. BIG DIFFERENCE!

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:37pm PST

I didn't want to really drag this on again. But since you insisted, let us talk about how Toyota "gamed" the system with all your EPA numbers. You apparently are agreeing with them on how Toyota "cheats" the system.

EPA test cycles are averaged over each different condition for 11 miles each. Toyota knows this so it designed an EV system barely large enough for the 11 miles cycle.

Even with that, the 2013 Volt showed a higher MPGe number than the 2013 PIP (98 vs 95). But 2012 Volt didn't b/c it had a 94 rating. Now let us look at your often quoted 29KWh/100mi and 0.2 gallon number. 0.2 gallon is 6.74KWh. 29+6.74 = 35.74 KWh. That is the total energy used for those 100 miles. 2012 Volt (36KWh) is slightly worse.

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:42pm PST

Now, 2013 Volt is 35KWh/100 miles. It is better than the 2012 Volt and the Pip. Why is it better if it is the same weight, same MPG in CS mode but better? B/c it has longer EV range. So, the longer the EV the better its actual MPGe it will be in this case.

Like I said many time. Prius is a benchmark in gas efficiency. I don't argue against it. In fact, I have defended it against diesel fan. But that is NOT the point here. The point is that driving on EV miles is more efficient, especially under heavy loading.

PIP loaded with 4 or 5 people won't be able to stay in EV mode anyway with normal acceleration or slight hill. It would have to use gas even in those short distance.

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usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/29/2012 11:01am PST

That's a pretty serious accusation. Do you have anything to back it up?

Here is my perspective. Toyota sized PiP battery to retain the cargo floor flat. See the pics below along with the battery capacity.

Production PiP (4.4 kWh) cargo:

http://carshowblitz.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2012-Toyota-Prius-Plug-In-rear-cargo-area.jpg

PiP (prototype with 5.2 kWh) cargo floor raised:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Toyota_Prius_Plug-in_cargo_space_WAS_2011_1021.jpg/640px-Toyota_Prius_Plug-in_cargo_space_WAS_2011_1021.jpg

C-Max Energi (7.6 kWh) cargo:

http://www.plugincars.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/fullsize_620w/C-Max-Energi-Cargo.jpeg

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usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/29/2012 11:08am PST

I have driven my PiP with 4 people and it was great with EV mode. I did not even use half the battery power so it was far from the ICE trigger threshold.

Remember, I use EV miles for city driving and the 50 MPG gas engine for highway or heavy acceleration.

2012 Volt's 35kWh/100mi would produce more emission than a 50 MPG Prius on gas.

PiP emission is rated 210 g/mi using national average electricity. Volt is rated 260 g/mi. PiP is the cleanest plugin and it happens to be a midsize.

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Papchas1 Posted: 11/28/2012 8:45am PST

Man you are a Prius Hater...wait until 2014-2015....Prius next Gen. will blow the VOLT out of the number one spot I KNOW MORE but we'll wait a few years big surprises from TOYOTA.......

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/28/2012 2:19pm PST

Correction, I am a Prius Plugin hater. I don't hate Prius. (I even like the Prius V) I don't like Prius (or C), but they are MPG benchmark. I don't like its "wimpy" and "boring" driving dynamic. But I understand that some people just want a reliable and efficient car that fits their need. They could care less about driving fun. That is okay, especially with a very reasonable starting price.

On the other hand, Pip s a terrible product by Toyota, especially with its EPA scamming E-range and worse safety/performance than regular Prius. After seeing many PIP "hogging" up public L2 charging stations for more than 2-3 hours in CA, taking away charging spots from other more realistic EVs/Plugins just infuriates me...

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Krafter324 Posted: 11/27/2012 1:14pm PST

Can't wait to hear the results of this promotion.

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 3:06pm PST

I guess Toyota has to discount the already cheaper PIP (comparing to Volt) with the C-Max Energi coming out. After all, why would most of the plugin buyers want a car with even worse performance (handling, acceleration and braking) than regular Prius, lower safety rating (4 star vs. Prius's 5 star), higher entry price point (although with more options)?

Of course, having the HOV access sticker helps. But now that C-Max Energi get it too, there is even less reason for it.

Sure, the 50MPG is better than the 43MPG, but that is a small difference. @ 15,000 miles per year, that is only 49 gallon in difference. That is assuming that you don't make up the difference with the very usable 20 EV miles.

Did I mention the better Performance?

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usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:04pm PST

In a gallon of gas, the difference between 50 MPG and 43 MPG is 4.72 kWh. PiP can put that much more energy to work from a gallon of gas.

The difference between 50 MPG and and 37 MPG is 8.76 kWh.

It takes about 3.1 kWh of electricity to fully charge PiP. So, that put things into perspective.

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 11:54pm PST

That is why Volt owners avoid using gas as much as possible. The difference between Volt's battery and Prius battery is also more than 7KWh. It just shows how inefficiently in general to use gas at all. @33.7KWh/gallon, a 95MPGe car is about 1.9x more efficient than the 50mpg Prius. So, it is best to stay on Electric as much as possible. According to your argument, Pip is efficient in EV and Gas, but its own EV efficiency is more than 2x more efficient than its own gas MPGe, yet it only provides it with the FEWEST EV range among ALL PLUGINs. Why don't Toyota extend that range out to achieve even more efficiency? B/c Toyota doesn't believe in electric miles, neither do you.

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Pat Posted: 11/28/2012 10:09am PST

Toyota i suspect originally priced the PIP to be cheaper then the Volt, and has slightly missed the window. I hope Toyota tunes the PIP to be a better vehicle. It'd be nice to have charts graphing out the various PHEV for Price, EV Range, Integrated MPG, etc..

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/28/2012 12:00am PST

Also, many studies have shown that Volt is more efficient in range less than 75 miles per day/charge. Pip/Prius is more efficient after than 75 miles range. Pip is slightly more efficient in less than 12 miles (arguable after the 2013 Volt model year) and that is only if you drive "carefully". In GCR's own review, it basically said "they gave up after trying to stay in EV mode". It just doesn't happen that easily...

So, if you drive really long miles per day, then regular Prius is great buy, especially after price adjusted. If you drive shorter than 75 miles, Volt is cheaper.

And the Volt still gives you a better driving experience while you are doing those miles. There are no comparison in driving dynamic. Volt is way better.

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markrogo Posted: 11/27/2012 4:50pm PST

I'm seeing $1000 in bonus cash, not $5000.

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fb_1559222512 Posted: 11/27/2012 6:13pm PST

That is what "SF Bay Area" see in their dealers. With carpool stickers, they don't have to discount it as much. 0% and 60months can be combined with the $1,000 cash offer.

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usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/27/2012 9:13pm PST

You can buy it out of state. Dealers from the Boston area seem to be offering the sweetest deals.

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markrogo Posted: 11/28/2012 2:11pm PST

I suppose Dennis. We'd be tempted, but I'm not sure we could do it all quickly enough to take advantage by the deadline.

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usbseawolf2000 Posted: 11/29/2012 10:52am PST

My salesman was John Barker (732-798-2711) from DCH Brunswick Toyota. They do out of state sales without you flying over in person. They have the best price in my area and very easy to work with.

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